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Josh Beytien - Mammoth Scanning Company

Mammoth Scanning Company
Dubuque, Iowa 52001

How many 19-year-olds do you know who possess the ambition, entrepreneurial spirit, and work ethic to launch a small business right after graduating from high school? Meet Josh Beytien. Josh started Mammoth Scanning Company in his hometown of Dubuque, Iowa, in 2012. Josh scans, categorizes, and stores documents and photographs in digital format for his clients. He learned his skills as an AmeriCorp volunteer at the Research Center for Dubuque History at Loras College while he was still in high school. At the Research Center, Josh was given archival documents and was responsible for scanning and storing them electronically. He was able to process large stacks of printed materials into a digital format quickly and efficiently.

Josh and his family realized that, given today’s increasing reliance on electronic storage and retrieval, his skills could be valuable in the workplace. Even so, they were concerned that Josh would not be well suited for a typical 9-to-5 workplace environment because Josh has autism. Researching the local market, the Beytiens discovered there were no other businesses in Dubuque offering a similar service, and the idea of creating Mammoth Scanning Company, as a specialty business, started taking shape. Josh got help from Iowa Vocational Rehabilitation Services to purchase a high-quality scanner, and the hardware and software he needed to create an online environment for client information, and he was on his way. With his equipment, Josh can handle high-volumes of documents at 40 to 60 pages a minute.

According to his dad, Craig, working in a traditional environment can be challenging for people on the autism spectrum because they often have a difficult time filtering out all of the stimuli. With this self-employment model, Josh loves his work and thrives in a structured work environment where the tasks are routine and manageable.

“People should not be intimidated by a special needs run-and-owned business,” Craig Beytien says. “His clients have been happy with the work Josh has done. He’s very detail-oriented.”

Josh would like to expand his business in the future by tapping into another market - scanning and storing cherished, and often fragile, individual and family photographs in electronic form. As the business grows, Josh may need to hire an employee to assist him. He already has three basic rules for any future employees of his company: no disrespectful music, no rudeness, and no foul language.

If Mammoth Scanning Company’s success continues, Josh and his family hope that eventually he will not need to rely on state or federal assistance. “Our goal is for Josh to be independent,” says his dad. “It’s the difference between receiving a check and earning a paycheck.”